2020 Resolutions: Trusting Your Intuition

Doubt is the devil. As women of the new world, we are blessed with a kind of magic power. That power is known to many as intuition.

I don’t actually know if men have this too but I do know that women have it. So my question here is, why is it so hard to simply trust our own “gut feelings” or follow our intuition? Perhaps it’s just difficult for me. But I’ve determined that the best thing I could do for myself is to make a conscious and concerted effort to trust my intuition. And what better time to do that than the beginning of a fresh new year. Trusting your intuition and taking action when it speaks to you really isn’t that difficult, you just have to decide to do it. The mental and physical improvements I’ve seen just by doing the things my gut is telling me to do have been kind of shocking. Below are the things I’ve been pulled to do and it’s taken me a while, but I’m finally letting go of control and listening to that little voice.

Move More

HUGE. My inner voice is always telling me to move. Even if it’s getting up from my desk and walking to the other side of the office, I feel an immediate sense of relief when I don’t ignore that itch to move. In a bigger more valuable way, moving a lot - like doing an hour of yoga or going for a run - has become a little bit like my saving grace. If I don’t do it regularly, I find myself feeling down, a little grey, and a lot frustrated. As tempting as it is to be a couch potato, that simply isn’t what inner Ilia wants.

Imbibe Less

This has been a reoccurring theme and a longtime coming. I’ve always liked to take small hiatus’ from drinking alcohol but I don’t think I knew what that meant until now. Alcohol is one of the most dangerous substances on the planet. Not just because it’s literal poison, but because it’s a poison that is widely accepted as something we should and do consume a lot of on a very frequent basis.

Social acceptance is something that one craves as a human being, and unfortunately, getting drunk is one way to achieve that. But it’s not the ONLY way. As a self-proclaimed control freak, I’ve somehow let my level of alcohol intake slip from my fingertips. So it’s time I reclaimed control. I encourage everyone to drink less alcohol and let me know how long it takes you to see an immense difference in the quality of your sleep. Seriously. Like a friggin baby these days.

Be More Honest

Beyond word vomit, because sometimes people think to be honest means saying whatever is on your mind. It’s not. Don’t be mean and try to read a situation before spouting off - but! If you feel something certainly say something. Being honest isn’t as easy as it should be. Probably because society feels relatively judgemental. For me personally, it’s difficult to be honest all the time because I’ve gotten punished for it. If that’s your experience as well, understand that honesty is not a negative. Anyone who makes you feel like it is, isn’t worthy of your energy frankly. Trying to operate based on something other than fear will help push through that issue and BONUS - it will help you become more yourself.

Try Something New

I have internal FOMO so I really want to try all the things. The trick here is to pick something and commit to it. This could be as small as trying zucchini noodles or as big as trying to sing in public. Whatever it is, make sure its you who wants to do and not just something your coworker convinced you to do.

I like to tie my new things to bigger goals - like trying to be healthier or more conscious of my consumption. A goal that often gets overlooked, however, is simply feeling more confident, so trying a new pole dancing class or buying sexy lingerie is totally goals too. Get it. Whatever it may be.

Try Not to Rush

In other words “be present” but that’s so vague to me. When people say be present I’m a little like well I’m here, aren’t I? It’s not that easy to hold my brain captive and not let her fly away to never-never land. It’s kind of impossible actually. So, instead, I’ve decided that simply not rushing is my version of “being present”. The way I do this is to simply acknowledge that if nothings on fire, no one is stuck under a bus, and there’s really nothing I need to be rushing to, I can allow myself to sit and enjoy whatever it is I’m doing in that particular moment. A lot of times it’s eating.

At this time of year it’s easy to feel like we should be doing this or should be working towards that, but if your gut is telling you that everything’s all good - trust that. It is incredibly common to self-sabotage a great life by thinking things are a little too good. I hope every single person reading this has the exact year that they’re dreaming of.